1. Technical Field
This invention generally relates to a cleaning appliance, and more specifically relates to a hard surface cleaning appliance.
2. Background Art
Many appliances have been devised for cleaning hard surfaces. Some such appliances have included spray nozzles that spray high pressure liquid on the surface to be cleaned. Regulations require that such appliances also remove the liquid and accompanying dirt (i.e., soil and/or other contaminants) from the surface after it has been sprayed.
One example of an appliance for spraying liquid on a surface is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,711,051 to Roden issued on Jan. 27, 1998 (hereinafter Roden). The Roden appliance includes a hood and an inner shroud positioned internally of the hood. Vacuum passages are formed between the hood and the shroud. A foramenous skirt depends from the lower edge of the hood and rests on the surface to be cleaned. The skirt is foramenous to allow air to be drawn through it and into the vacuum passage. A rotating spray assembly is positioned within the shroud. Thus, cleaning liquid and dirt enter the vacuum passage from within the shroud, while air enters the passage after passing through the skirt. The Roden appliance is an advancement in the area of hard surface cleaning appliances, but the arrangement of the airflow through the appliance has hindered its performance. Other cleaning appliances suffer from similar problems.
Therefore, there existed a need to provide a hard surface cleaning appliance that would supply cleaning liquid to a surface to be cleaned, and that would efficiently remove liquid and dirt from the surface after the surface has been sprayed with liquid.
According to the present invention, a hard surface cleaning appliance includes a hood separating an interior space within the hood from an exterior space outside the hood. The hood includes a top wall as well as a solid outer side wall and an inner side wall depending from the top wall. The outer side wall includes a lower edge that is adapted to contact a surface to be cleaned, while the inner side wall includes a lower edge spaced inwardly of the outer wall that is elevated above the surface to be cleaned. A vacuum passage is formed between the inner side wall and the outer side wall, and a vacuum source is fluidly connected to the vacuum passage. A spout within the interior space is fluidly connected to a cleaning liquid source. Because the lower edge of the outer side wall contacts the surface to be cleaned but the lower edge of the inner side wall is elevated above the surface to be cleaned, air, cleaning liquid, and dirt are all drawn beneath the lower edge of the inner side wall and into the vacuum passage from the same direction so that the airflow aids in the removal of cleaning liquid and dirt from surface.
The appliance may include a vacuum relief passage extending through the hood and thereby fluidly connecting the interior space with the exterior space. A vacuum relief valve can prevent fluids from exiting the interior space through the vacuum relief passage, but allow fluids to enter the interior space through the vacuum relief passage. Also, the outer wall may include a solid outer depending side wall and a solid skirt mounted on a lower edge of the outer depending side wall so that the skirt contacts the surface to be cleaned. The skirt may be formed so that the cleaning appliance will easily move across the surface to be cleaned. The vacuum relief passage allows air to flow into the interior space and still enter the vacuum passage from the same direction as cleaning liquid and dirt. Thus, the appliance of the present invention efficiently removes dirt and cleaning liquid from the surface to be cleaned.
The foregoing and other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following more particular description of preferred embodiments of the invention, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.